Glitchfell Book 1: Broken Roads and Bad Times
by budgrant123
Summary: This is the start of a book series based on the Glitchtale, Undertale and Underfell Universes.However, it's all new characters that tie into the original story. It centers around Michael, an 11 year old boy. This however is an AU world (Similar to Glitchtale) where the world isn't just humans and monsters. There's one more thing in this world. What are they? Nobody knows...
1. Prologue and Intro

_This is the start of a book series based on the Glitchtale, Undertale and Underfell Universes. However, it's all new characters that tie into the original story. It centers on Michael, an 11-year-old boy. This, however, is an AU world (Similar to Glitchtale) where the world isn't just humans and monsters. There's one more thing in this world. What are they? No one knows what they truly are. In this world, all humans possess traits and every child is born with one trait, two traits(Dual Trait SOULS,) or a small portion of all the traits (Rainbow SOULS) They possess either Determination, Bravery, Kindness, Justice, Integrity, Patience, Perseverance or Trust. Traits give every single human magical powers. There are also the "other" traits although no human children possess them. What about Michael? What is his trait? What is his story? Well, sit back and relax. It's time for Glitchfell._

 _Prologue_

 _Long ago, humans and monsters battled for supremacy but the humans were divided and the monsters were able to force a peace treaty to be signed. Monsters were given rights to the lands surrounding Mount Dianso. The monsters settled down, believing peace to be achieved. Unfortunately, several years later, the disappearance of a child with a monster as the top suspect escalated into a second war which the humans won. The humans banished the monsters underground, sealing them off with a magic spell. It would take a great power to destroy or be able to pass through the barrier. Monsters vowed revenge against the humans. Lukia, their queen, promised to kill any human who ever fell down Mount Dianso. The lands under Dianso became known as the forbidden realm. Humans settled down and there was an uneasy peace..._

 _Many years later,_

 _Mount Dianso 209W_

 _Legends say that those who climb the mountain disappear from the human world, never to return. Trapped forever in the Forbidden Realm..._


	2. Chapter 1: Glitchfell Origins

_The Kingdom of Sunvale, 1,000 years ago._

" _Daniel, we can't do this." "We can't just get rid of the barrier."_

" _Sarah, listen, it's been years since the war. Why don't we give the monsters a second chance?"_

" _Are you insane?!" "May I remind you they kidnapped that child and we lost the first war?!"_

" _That may be true, but we won the second war and the monsters are probably much more peaceful now." "We also have no proof that the monsters kidnapped the child."_

" _You're crazy if you think that they've changed. I mean that's why they're called monsters after all." "We trapped them down there for a reason, we were never meant to live together in peace." "I can't let you ruin what we've worked so hard for." "The peace. The rebirth of humanity." "Our race was almost wiped out." We've fought them twice." "If it hadn't been for_ _ **him,**_ _we would've died." "All that we've achieved, I can't let you take that away."_

" _You could never beat me, Sarah." "If you want a fight, then I'll give you one."_ " _Let's settle this, once and for all!"_

 _Several years later,_

I am walking through the hallways of the castle of Sunvale.

"Where are Mom and Daniel?"

I never met my real parents but Sarah told me they died in an accident. _My name is Michael Sunvale. I am an 11 year old boy and a dual trait SOUL. I possess two traits,_ _Kindness_ _and_ _Determination._ _Because of this, I had mismatched eyes. One red and one green. But ever since that dark day that I lost_ _ **her**_ _, my eyes became red. Eyes of Pure_ _DETERMINATION_ _. Sarah is 10 years older than me and I've always thought of her as my mother even though we aren't related. She is the Wizard of_ _Determination_ _. Daniel is a year or two younger than Sarah and I thought of him as an older brother. He just didn't have that fatherlike appearance. He was the Wizard of Bravery. Until… Anyways, since I never met or knew my real parents, they have taken care of me._

I continue walking down the castle halls.

"Where could they be?" I suddenly hear a noise. It sounds like a crashing noise. My ears perk up.

"What was that?" Another booming noise. I hear voices.

"We've worked too long and too hard to maintain this prosperity." "I won't just let you take everything we've worked for and throw it down the drain." That's Sarah's voice.

"It's been years since the war, let's put this all behind us." "..." "Fine, I guess I have no choice."

 _That's Daniel's voice. The booming and crashing noises. They're fighting. I have to stop them. The last time they fought, Daniel lost the battle and his trait. Unfortunately, Sarah nearly lost her trait in the process. If she loses again... I run down the hallways. Where could they be? I gasp. Of course, the throne room. I race down the hallway and enter the throne room. I see Sarah on her knees and Daniel is charging up a spell. He's got a grin on his face, almost as if he's lost his mind. His eyes are black and I see a look of pure HATE on his face._

" _ **Pay the price for your crime, with this spell, you're out of time." "Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, and with this spell, now you die."**_

 _A beam of darkness shoots out of Daniel's staff. A forbidden spell!_

" _Sarah, no!"_

 _It felt like it happened in seconds, one second I was leaping forward to block the spell, and then the next moment, the spell hit me. I stagger and fall to my knees. I turn to look at Sarah._

" _Michael!"_ _Daniel seems to snap out of it. His eyes turn grey and his hair turns white._

" _Michael... no... The spell... It wasn't meant for you."_

 _I look at Sarah._

" _I couldn't let you die. I couldn't let him win." "I'm sorry, guess I really am just an an idiot."_

 _I feel a pain in my chest as my SOUL appears in front of me. The heart cracks, splinters and finally shatters._ " _Michael, no!_ _I give Sarah one last smile. I feel my body losing control as I fall to the ground and everything fades to black..._

" _There's not much time, I'm going to die." "If I do, then he'll win. Even if he dies, the barrier will be destroyed and… no… That's not going to happen._

" _ **I call upon the forbidden spell**_ _ **Bête d'Or." Sarah's staff begins to glow."With this spell, I sacrifice, my living soul to save a life, humans, and monsters, will forever live in strife, as long as this being is alive. Now I sacrifice everything to create Être ultime."**_

 **There's a flash of light and then she falls to her knees and dies.**


	3. Chapter 2: An Unexpected Alliance

_Chapter 2: An Unexpected Alliance_

 _400 years later,_

 _I'm dead. I'm dead. Wait…_

 _I open my eyes."Huh? What's going on? Where am I? What happened to me? Why do I have golden eyes and black hair?_

 _My hair was brown and my eyes were mismatched and then they were red. They were red and green. All I can see is an endless void. I guess I'll just call it the Void."_

" _Have I been asleep?" "How long has it been?" "Why am I awake?" "How am I alive? Daniel, he killed me. The spell he was going to use on Sarah, it hit me instead._

 _Why do I feel so empty? I have nothing." "What is my purpose? What am I supposed to do?"_

 _Suddenly a screen appears in front of me. "Huh, what is this?" The screen turns on. It shows a girl wearing a green shirt with a red stripe. Then there's a goat boy. The girl calls him Asriel. The goat boy calls her Chara._

 _Next, it shows the Monster King Asgore. He declared his war on humanity, vowing to kill any human who came down there._

 _What a horrible and pathetic creature. Next comes a goat women wearing clothes with what looks like the logo of the delta rune on them._

 _Then come the children. Six of them. One by one, they all die. All of them falling on their journey. Then it shows another child. She is wearing a pink and blue jumper and has brown eyes. The monsters, their king, Asgore takes their SOULS. Except the last one, she survives and leaves._

 _Then she comes back, but something's different. Her eyes glow red and she murders every last monster. In the end, it is revealed that it was Chara all along, manipulating Frisk to their will._

 _It continues onward, the "death" of Chara, the first child and how Frisk "saved" everyone. Then they return to the surface and then it ends._

 _The last thing shown is a picture containing Frisk and all her friends. There's a skeleton named Sans, a dinosaur named Alphys, a fish named Undyne, another skeleton named Papyrus and a robot named Mettaton. "What happens next?" The screen disappears. "I guess that's it, then._

" _Humans and Monsters, they can't live in peace." "I must prevent it." "I must do what needs to be done."_

" _What am I? Something made to be bullied? Something made to be rejected? Or how about something made to be hated? Looks like it._

 _I never asked to be made. I didn't ask to be this way. But it's what I am. And here I am trying to fulfill my purpose despite my doubts._

 _I know I don't have a choice. I have to make her proud. Sarah… Mom, I know what she wants me to do. I have no friends, I can't trust the humans. And the monsters... They're too dangerous._

 _Frisk and Chara looked so nice and innocent at first but then I saw all the things they did to their so-called "friends." Frisk even had the nerve to call herself a pacifist and turned Chara into a hate-filled monster._

 _Then I thought the monsters would be different. I saw Asgore. Those poor children. I thought his son Asriel, would be different. But he kept his fair share of secrets. He did look cute as a flower though._

 _The small skeleton, he wasn't any different._ _He watched it all happen at first. And only intervened at the end. Only to murder them until he lost count._

 _Trying to pretend they're something they're not. Ha! And they got angry with me for doing the same. Hypocrites. I can see why Sarah wanted me to do this. I'll do everything I can to fulfill my purpose. It won't be easy to accomplish this. All humans possess power based on their traits. And the monsters, some of them possess Determination. I can't do this alone. If I'm going to get out of here, I'm going to need some help._

" _Hmm, did someone say that they needed help?"_

"Huh?" I get to my feet. "Who said that?"

"It's me, Betty."

"Betty? Who are you?" A girl appears in front of me. She has pink and brown hair and pink eyes. She looks about my age.

"I'm from another world."

"Another world? What are you talking about?"

"I have been listening very intently to what you have been saying out loud."

"Interesting, it reminds me a lot of another child."

"At least I thought she was like me."

"In the end, it didn't work out."

"They defeated me and I'm too weak right now to attack them again."

"Who?"

"The humans and monsters." "They worked together and defeated me."

"Your world has humans and monsters too?"

"Yes, every world does." "But you and I, we're both something special. We're creations. I was created to signify _**FEAR**_ and you are a-"

"A what?"

"I don't actually know." "What I do know is that you possess great power."

"Great power?"

"I need you to help me."

"Help you?" "How can I help you?"

"You have the power to revive human souls and absorb any soul."

"How do you know about that?"

"I've been keeping an eye on you since the beginning." "You are like me but even more powerful."

"You have the power to change the timeline and to change the story. You can travel through the timelines freely and help me recover." "However, there is one thing." "You can't travel between worlds yet." "Even with your help, the humans might be too powerful."

"What are you wanting me to do?"

"I want you to infiltrate their ranks. Create chaos, sow distrust, divide them." "In order to do this, you need to enter their world."

"You mean, I have to go to their world?"

"Yes, then you must gain their trust." "Together, we can defeat them."

"Sounds like a wonderful idea." "I won't fail you, Betty." "Wonderful, I'm glad I could find someone I can trust..." "I'm going to use my power to send you back to your world now."

I look at Betty in surprise "You can do that?"

"I possess great power of my own." "Someday I will return and remind you of your mission and who I am." "Hopefully by then, you'll be ready and I'll be recovered enough to make my next move."

"Farewell Betty." She glows in a pink aura as the light blinds me and I leave the void…


	4. Chapter 3: Awakening my True Powers

" _Ugh, my head hurts." "Where am I?" I look around. I'm surrounded by humans. But something's not right. Where's the castle? What happened?_

" _Did that kid just appear in the middle of the village?"_

" _No, I brought him here."_

 _I look to my left and see a young girl around my age with brown hair and blue eyes. An Integrity SOUL._

" _Trinity? You brought this boy here?"_

" _Yeah."_ _She walks towards me and touches my forehead._

" _His name is Michael. He has no family and he's confused and lost."_

" _Very well, you will take care of him..."_

 _A few years later,_

"I hate my life." I sigh as I get out of bed.

"I'm treated like dirt, I get bullied all the time and the only one who treats me nice is Trinity."

"But my best friend went missing years ago."

"To make matters worse, the village believes something's wrong with me."

"As the only child with black and gold hair and gold eyes, I'm not normal to them." "The sad thing is, that's technically true." "I'm not normal."

I guess I should step back and explain...

My name is Michael. I had a last name once. I have a so-called sister named Trinity who adopted me and I live in Dianso Village. She's now older than me because I'm cursed.

What do you mean, I'm cursed? I found out not that long ago when I read the legend of the twin siblings. It's no legend, those were my guardians.

My reincarnation brought me back to life but, I can't age. Also, I can't die and if I lose my SOUL, I'll just become a ghost. My SOUL can't be destroyed so basically, I'm forever trapped an 11-year-old boy.

Dianso seems like an odd name but that's because the village is named after the mountain where the village was built nearby. Mt. Dianso. Or as it's also now known, the Mountain of Despair.

It seems the village was built by the descendants of the kingdom. After the deaths of Sarah, Daniel and myself, the wizards came out of hiding even though they were thought to be dead and fought for supremacy. The Kingdom was destroyed and humanity scattered to the far corners of the realm.

According to legend, those who fall down the mountain never return. Trapped forever in the Forbidden Realm. I know the legend well. It is no legend at all. I wonder what happens to the children? With the recent disappearance of another child last week, that makes 7.

I know about the monsters and their true colors. I am not part of this time. I was alive long ago but brought back for a purpose.

I look at the golden locket around my neck. Sarah gave me it after I saw her fight Daniel. Daniel fled and she had given me this. She said someone special wanted me to have it. I put my fingers around the pictures of my best friend and Sarah. "Sarah, Sammy, I won't fail you."

I get out of bed, put on my gold shirt with a red stripe and shorts. I put on my shoes and then I walk outside.

I walk through the village and immediately encounter the village kids. Their leader, Lucas smiles as he walks toward me. He thinks he's so cool because he's 12 and I'm 11. He's also a dual trait as well. His traits are Determination and Perseverance.

"Well well well, if it isn't the coward himself?"

I turn to Lucas "Don't you have anything better to do?"

"You're just a weakling and a loser Michael."

"Just because I don't talk to you or want to be your friend, doesn't make me a weakling or a loser."

"So what if I'm different?" "It doesn't matter."

Golden flames flicker in my eyes. "You don't want to see me angry." "Trust me." "You'll regret ever crossing paths with me."

He pushes me. I stay on my feet.

"Fight back!" He pushes me again. I don't react. I suddenly hear a voice.

"Leave him alone." I turn to the right and see Trinity?

"Trinity? What are you doing here?"

"You just walk off without saying goodbye?" "Come on, Michael."

"Oh look, your sister is here to protect you now."

I can feel my anger building. I've been holding it in for so long. My hand starts to twitch and I the flames flicker again.

"Trinity... leave... please..."

"No, let her stay, the more the merrier!"

Right as he finishes his sentence he pushes Trinity onto the ground and kicks her in the ankle. She falls and I hear the sound of bones snapping. She collapses, unable to move.

"Trinity!" I run over to her to check on her. She's hurt but she'll be okay.

"You, you monsters." My eyes glow with golden flames and my hair turns gold.

"Woah, hey man, it was just a joke, man please, stay away from me."

"A joke, huh?" "Then where's the punch line?"

I swing my hand outward towards Lucas. The punch connects in his face. It launches him across the village and through a brick wall. The other kids try to run away.

"Patience's fortune." I snap my fingers and time freezes. I toss the other kid into the river and pin another against the wall.

Suddenly, I gasp as I realize what I'm doing and time unfreezes.

My body. What's happening to it? I let go of the kid and run away.

I don't stop running until I reach my home. I open the door and run inside. I run quickly to my room. What was that? That power. I lost control of myself. I had held it in for so long. I didn't realize.

Huh? I look in the corner by my bed. What is this thing in my room? It looks like a twinkling yellow star. I click on it. The star turns gold.

"Your true powers have been awakened. You are filled with Determination."

I look at the board. It reads Michael, LV 2, HP 24/24, ATT 12 DF 10 SPD 99 INV 25 EXP 10 EXP to LV 10.

This seems so familiar. But I can't remember where it's from. Every human has a trait. Even those annoying kids. Trinity has the trait of Integrity. My trait, I have no idea what my trait is. I think it might be Determination. However, I am nothing like the few other kids who possess determination. I'm also the only child with a gold SOUL.

So my trait must be something else. However, I seem to be able to call upon the powers of every trait. Even the anti traits, which no children possess.

I look over the board carefully. HP must be what your health is. What is LV? I feel like I should know but I don't have a clue. ATT is Attack and DF is Defense. SPD is speed, but what are EXP and INV? INV? Does that stand for invincibility? Then what does EXP stand for? Experience?


	5. Chapter 4 Beginnings of a Friendship

The room suddenly darkens. Huh? What's going on?

"Finally, I've been waiting for quite some time."

I gasp. "That voice. I recognize it."

"You remember who I am?"

A girl appears. A cute looking girl maybe a year older than me or my age with pink and auburn hair and pink eyes.

"It's you. I almost thought I would never see you again." "You're Betty, right?"

"Technically, it's Bete Noire, but you can call me Betty." "That or you could call me by my nickname."

"What might that be?" She grins.

" _The Black Beast."_

"Well that's a nickname."

"Because you and I are alike, I think I'll call you, "The Golden Beast."

"Because of my golden eyes?"

"Yep."

"I like it."

"But you ultimately have an advantage that I don't."

"What might that be?"

"You possess all the traits. The Human and Glitched SOUL traits. You don't possess HATE." HATE can't possess you." "You also are much faster and your invulnerability, it's much higher than mine."

I look at the star in the room. Hmm, I wonder... "I want to try something."

Betty looks at me intrigued."What is it?"

"I want to see something real quick." "What will it say if you click the yellow star?

"I don't have the power of Determination." "I don't think it will-"

I put her hand on the star. The star turns pink. The child of FEAR. LV Unknown EXP Unknown ATT 90 DEF 90. "Woah."

"Interesting." "It didn't show your name and your LV and EXP are unknown."

"Maybe, it doesn't know."

I take a look at it. I don't see the same thing as she saw. I actually see numbers and stats. But the name is different.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"I don't know." I decide not to press the issue.

"You know what you have to do, right?"

"I need to gain LV and EXP. I must journey to the Forbidden Realm."

She grins. "You do remember."

"Once I have achieved a sufficient amount of LV and EXP, my true powers will be revealed and we can return to your world."

"I was wondering if I could come with you."

"You want to come with me?"

"I've never been to the forbidden realm or the Underground." "Also, I want to see you in action."

"Really?"

"Yes, I also want to be there to support you."

"I don't need the help but I appreciate the company."

"I have a question."

"What might that be?"

"Do you have a weapon?"

"Of course I do." I open a box in my room and pull out the dagger. "Woah, what is that?" "My dagger." Michael's Dagger: Enchanted by a magic spell. Can cut through anything and can channel magic. ATT 10, DF 10 Increases Attack and Defense when equipped. Attack and Defense increases per every LV increase."Wow, that's really cool." "How did you get it to be gold?"

I look at the locket and see Sammys picture. I sigh.

"It's a long story." I put the dagger in its sheath and put it in my pocket. "Come on Betty, we've got some work to do." "Let's."


	6. Chapter 5 The Worst Betrayal

I'm about to walk out the door of my room when I run into Trinity. "Uh, hey Trinity." "What are you doing here?"

"How did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"How did you launch Lucas and his friends across the village into the river?"

I close the door to my room and face Trinity. "I can't tell you."

"What do you mean, you can't tell me?" "I'm your sister."

"I can't tell you." "Now if you'll excuse me."

I try to walk past her but she blocks the doorway.

"You're not going anywhere until you explain yourself."

"Trinity, get out of my way." "I have a job to do."

She blocks my path.

"I've never seen anyone do anything like that before." "Tell me or I'll tell the village."

"You would really sell me out? What kind of sister are you?"

"A sister who wants to know what her brother has been hiding from her."

She summons a blue spear as her eyes turn a darker shade of blue. "If you don't tell me, I will fight you." She holds the spear menacingly.

"You would pull out a spear on your brother?" My eyes are gold as the sun and my hair darkens.

"Interesting." "Allow me to show you what else I hid from you."

I pull out my dagger and she gasps.

"What is that?"

"It's my dagger."

"Where did you get that?"

"That's not your concern."

"What is this? Just what are you? Who are you?

"You know, there's something else I am going to show you. I reveal the save point.

"What is that?"

"It's a SAVE point." "It's a gift that children of Determination and I possess." "I just thought, it would be nice if you could see your stats. "It might help you reconsider your decision." "First, you can see yours."

I take her hand and click the Save Point. The star turns blue. Trinity LV 1 HP 20/20 Attack 6 Defense 10.

"Interesting, you don't even have 10 attack." "But yet, your LV is 1. Hmm, maybe it's because you challenged me." "Or maybe, you're hiding something from me."

"Tell me what exactly you are." "I'll tell you everything."

"Really?"

"On one condition." "You move out of my way."

"Not going to happen."

"Then there's just one last thing." "Let me show you my stats."

I click the star. The star turns gold. The stats have changed. Michael LV 3 HP 28/28 ATT 24 DF 20 EXP 30.

"Why is your LV 3, why do you have higher attack and what is EXP?"

"That's not your concern." "Get out of my way, and I'll leave you be." "If you try to stop me… This is your last warning."

She hesitates, stops and then grits her teeth. She throws the spear at me.

I chuckle. "Shield of Determination."

A golden shield appears, blocking Trinity's spear. She gasps.

"Next time, try a less predictable attack." "Arc of Justice."

My eyes glow with golden flames and I grin. I swing my dagger in an arc. The arc fires at Trinity launching her backwards as she crashes through the house and outside. I leap into the air and lightly descend to the ground.

"I'm going easy on you, so please, just leave me be and I will spare you."

I walk up to her and reach out my hand to her. She leaps to her feet and throws the spear at me. It hits me in the arm.

"... So be it." "I won't hold back." I swing at her with my dagger and she swings her spear up to block me. "I gave you a chance, now you will pay the price." She swings the spear at me and I jump out of the way. "Too slow, Trinity."

"Just who are you?" She summons a circle of spears that surround me. "Hmm, now this is more like it." I leap into the air to avoid her spears and use my dagger to destroy the rest. "You're not my brother, who are you?"

"Well, you're technically right." "I am not your brother." "We are not related at all." "I was once a young boy named Michael Sunvale."

"Sunvale, wait like the twin wizards Sunvale? From the legends?"

"It's no legend." "They were alive and wizards. I should know, I was their child. They were my guardians. I created the barrier to trap monsters in the forbidden realm."

"My parents, my guardians told me they died when I was little in an accident." "Sarah and Daniel Sunvale, they took care of me. I always thought of Sarah as my mother and Daniel as an older brother."

"It was many years ago, but it feels like yesterday. Daniel and Sarah were arguing about the Barrier. Sarah believed the monsters couldn't be trusted and the barrier should be kept in place." "Daniel believed monsters deserved a second chance and that the Barrier should be destroyed."

The argument spiraled out of control and the two battled. The first time, Sarah won. Daniel accused her of cheating and vowed revenge. He lost his trait, which was Bravery.

Several years passed and Daniel returned. We accepted him, believing he intended to reconcile.

I was horribly wrong. Soon afterwards, he attacked Sarah again. This time, Daniel was different. He seemed to be under some sort of dark influence. He was full of HATE. He had found a trait that could match Determination. He tried to use a forbidden magic spell to kill Sarah. I leaped forward and took the hit. I staggered and fell to my knees. My SOUL shattered and I died.

"But, you're alive right now, that's not possible." "What happened?"

"I can't tell you that." "Now, please get out of my way."

"No."

"Excuse me?"

"I'm taking you to the village, we're gonna figure this out."

"You have to beat me first."

"Fine, I guess I have no choice." "Pure Heart." I notice that her fatigue fades and her mind seems to be clearer.

"Hmm, a power of Integrity, I presume?"

"To think that I didn't sense a threat right in front of me?" "What was I thinking?" "Unless… no." "It doesn't even matter." "I will not let you pass." She summons another spear.

"Spears, huh? Why are you so predictable?" "Bravery's Flame." I summon golden fireballs. "Things are really heating up!" I throw the fireballs at Trinity. She runs and uses her spear to try and avoid the flames. She charges with her spear and I swing my dagger up to deflect her spear.

How am I going to beat her? She is stubborn and doesn't give up. Odd, for a child of Integrity.

If I can't beat her using a normal human trait, maybe I should try using an anti trait. I got it. _Deception_. I'll fool her into thinking she is blocking my dagger when in reality, the dagger will not actually be in my hand.

Instead I will catch her completely off guard. I grin. I toss my dagger into the air. Trinity charges at me, spear in hand. I grin and duck, her attack misses me and I smile.

Deception. "Hey, Trinity?" "You doing alright?"

She charges at me one last time and I grin. I duck, the dagger appears in my hand and I slice upwards.

The dagger slices across Trinity's body. Her HP drops to 0/20. She staggers and falls to her knees. She looks like she is in absolute shock.

"How… How could I lose?" "I can't believe it. With one hit… I thought you were my brother. I thought I could trust you." "I warned you, didn't I? I told you to let me go but you refused and challenged me to a fight." "I had no other choice." "Now, you can't stand in my way."

"Why does it hurt, so much?"

"All you had to do was stay out of my way and no harm would have been done to you." "However, there is something I need from you before you- you know..."

"Before I die?"

"Yes, your SOUL." "It's a shame it had to end like this." I close my eyes and lift my hand up slowly. "I will take that."

Trinity's SOUL comes into view and soars into my hand. It is glowing blue. I cup it in my hand and my body absorbs it. Trinity falls down and doesn't wake again.


	7. Chapter 6: The Journey Begins

"Impressive, very impressive."

I look to my left. Betty is laying on my bed talking to what looks like a glowing pink ball?

For the incarnation of FEAR, she is cute. Like really cute...

"Hello, Betty." "What is that?"

"Oh? Sorry, you two have never met, have you?" "This is Kumu, my companion."

"Hello Kumu." Kumu gives me a smile.

"So, how did you handle killing her?"

"She got in my way." "She thought she could stop me." "Defeating her made me stronger." "Look." I click the golden star. Michael LV 5 HP 36/36 ATT 28 DF 22.

"Interesting." "You are growing stronger."

"Well, shall we?"

"Let's go."

"Mount Dianso awaits."

"Mount Dianso?"

It is the only way to get to the forbidden realm." "According to legend, there is a cave that leads to the forbidden realm." "Of course, it's no legend at all. I was alive when the barrier was put up." "I know where the cave is and what we need to do to reach the forbidden realm." "However, there is only one way to get there." "We must jump down the hole."

"Well, it's a good thing neither of us are humans." "Let's get going then."

We walk out of the house and through the village. I see Lucas and his friends torturing another kid. I walk towards him and he suddenly stops.

"Not again. Dude, please, leave me alone."

He runs away.

"Are you going to go after him?" I shake my head in disgust.

"Not worth my time." "Let's get going."

We leave Dianso Village and head towards the mountain. We have to go through the forest to the south of the village.

As we travel through the forest, I turn to Betty. "I want to tell you something."

"What do you want to tell me?"

"My story." "My name was Michael Sunvale." "My parents died when I was little in an accident or that's at least what my guardians told me." "I was raised by Sarah Sunvale and Daniel Sunvale, rulers of the Ancient Kingdom of Sunvale in this world."

"Sunvale?"

"Yeah." "They were two of the original eight wizards who created the barrier."

"Eight? I thought there were seven."

"Maybe in your world." "In my world there are eight." "The traits are Determination, Kindness, Justice, Perseverance, Bravery, Patience, Integrity, and Trust. "Sarah was the magician of Determination and Daniel, the Wizard of Bravery." I was a dual trait SOUL. My traits were kindness and determination.

"Ok, what happened?"

"Sarah and Daniel were having an argument about the barrier. Sarah believed monsters were too dangerous and that they couldn't live in peace with humans." "Daniel, believed the opposite." "He wanted to destroy the barrier and let the monsters return."

"The argument spiraled out of control and the two battled. The first time, Sarah won. Daniel accused her of cheating and vowed revenge. He lost his trait, which was Bravery."

"Several years passed and Daniel returned. We accepted him, believing he intended to reconcile. I was horribly wrong." "Soon afterwards, he attacked Sarah again. This time, Daniel was different. He seemed to be under some sort of dark influence." "He was full of **HATE**. He had found a trait that could match Determination." "He was about to use a forbidden magic spell to kill Sarah. I leaped forward and took the hit. I staggered and fell to my knees. My SOUL shattered and I died." "The next thing I knew, I woke up in the void."

She gasps. "That's awful."

"Yeah."


	8. Chapter 7: The Story of Amber Lightvale

"Hey Michael?"

"Yeah?"

"Your story."

"Yeah, what about it?"

"My story is similar."

"Really?"

"Let me tell you the story of Amber Lightvale."

"Long ago, there was an ancient kingdom of humans similar to yours called Lightvale." "I was born during the night. My older siblings Copper and Agate took care of me as my mother died after I was born. Her SOUL, a SOUL of Integrity shattered and she died.

I grew up in the castle of Lightvale with Agate and Copper." "My name was Amber Lightvale. I was a 11 year old girl. I was a DUAL Trait SOUL, with the same traits as you. I loved Agate like a mother." "She loved me and cared for me.

One day, I couldn't sleep well. I walked out of bed, looking for Agate. I heard screaming and yelling. I walked into their room to see Agate and Copper arguing about the question of monster kind. Agate wanted to let the monsters return while Copper wanted to keep them down there."

"Copper challenged Agate and decided to fight her while I was seeing them with a human guard. I saw the whole thing. At the end of the fight, Copper lost the battle and lost her trait. She fled. "

"Copper came back and challenged her once again by threatening me. When I tried to run, Copper trapped me. She won the battle after killing me in front of Agate which resulted in her losing her determination and subsequently dying" "Then Copper carried my corpse and used the "Bête noire" spell on herself. She brought me back to life as Bete Noire and she died."

"I woke up in a void with nobody but my trusty companion over there, Kumu. We became friends and worked together to accomplish our mission. The humans are powerful though. We weren't strong enough. I needed help and so I searched the worlds and timelines looking for an ally.

"Then I found you." "You are the ultimate being." "You can do anything and together we'll be unstoppable."

"Ultimate being… Unstoppable… I like the sound of that."

"That screen you saw, with the characters and everything?"

"How did you know about that?"

"I saw the same thing."

"Oh." "You want to know something, Betty?" "What?" I turned and gave her a hug.

She gasps. "No one has hugged me ever, at least not Betty me."

"I was wrong." "I do appreciate the company and the help. Together, we can do anything."

She blushes nervously. "Don't say such things, just focus on the mission."

"Alright, alright." "You do know you're blushing, right?"

"Huh? Whaa!" She punches me in the shoulder.

"Ow!" I chuckle.

"Did that actually hurt?"

"Not really."

"Let's keep going."

"Fine."

We continue through the forest in silence. Soon, we reach the cavern on the south side of Mount Dianso.

"Well here it is." We look down.

"I can't even see the bottom."

"Neither can I."

"How far down do you think it is?"

I grab a small rock and toss it. I listen, waiting to see if I can hear it hit the ground. It keeps going and going until I can't hear or see it anymore. Then I hear a very faint plop.

"So?"

"I would say about 9,000 feet, give or take."

"If we were humans, it would take a miracle to survive that fall."

"Yeah, it would."

I take Betty's hand in mine. "Shall we?"

"Let's."

We jump down the hole and into the Forbidden Realm…


	9. Chapter 8: Mount Dianso Forbidden Realm

Time seems to slow down as we descend into the mountain. Betty and I are still holding hands and she turns to me.

"Since, we're probably going to be falling for a bit." "I want to ask you something."

"Sure."

"Do you hate monsters and humanity?"

"Humanity treated me like dirt and the monsters, well I believe Sarah was right and that the monsters truly are monsters."

"I loved humanity once but now, things are different." "The monsters, I never really got to know them. I just believed that they could never live in peace with humans."

"Exactly."

"Do you regret doing it?"

"Doing what?"

"Taking the hit and dying."

"Not at all." "I made a sacrifice." "I wish I could've made him pay but if he had killed her, he would have killed me."

"You sacrificed your life and now you've become this." "I didn't get a choice. I was brutally murdered"

I give her a hug and hold her close. "Neither of us asked for this." "We were just kids." I release her. "But now, we'll pay them back in full."

"Yes, we will."

"The monsters will die and humanity will pay the price."

"Yes, they will."

We continue to descend down the mountain.

"Are we almost to the bottom?"

I look down. It starts to come into view.

"Yep, here we go."

Just as we are about to hit the bottom, I snap my fingers and say "Patience's fortune."

Time freezes and we stop falling. I snap them again. Time resumes and we land peacefully.

"You can freeze time?"

"Not for very long and not while in battle. It only works if I'm in danger."

"That's really cool though."

"Yeah." "What did we land on?"

"It looks like a bed."

"A bed?"

"Of golden flowers."

"Golden flowers?" I gasp. "Those are and were my favorite."

"Really?"

"Yeah." "Sarah and I would go and pick them all the time." "Then Daniel would show up and ruin the fun."

"That's unfortunate."

"Yeah, but it's nice to see the flowers again. I actually didn't think there would be flowers in the Forbidden Realm."

"Why?"

"The golden flowers are from my world."

"Oh." "Well now that we're here."

"We should get to it then." We turn and start walking down the hallway.

As we descend down the corridor, I start to understand why it's called the forbidden realm. I see spikes, caves and rubble everywhere.

"I've never seen such a sinister and desolate looking place."

"Where are the monsters? Where is anything? Everything is just an absolute wreck." "I think this is the Ancient RUINS." "Just a thought." "Was it like that in your world?" "I never saw the Underground." "I just saw it on the screen like you did." "Oh." "Well, there must be something down here." "Children have disappeared down the mountain over the last 3 centuries." "Maybe, they're down here, too." "Yeah, maybe." A thought comes to my mind. Could it be possible? No, there's no way, she disappeared back when I was alive. I still remember her last words before she let go of the precipice. Wait a minute, _disappeared. Those who climb the mountain, disappear, never to return, trapped forever in the forbidden realm._ "Could it be possible?" "Could what be possible?" I realize that I said that out loud. "Oh, uh, could it be possible that the monsters are holding children hostage or killing them?" "That won't matter much longer. Whether we find them or not, the monsters will pay regardless." "You thought we would have seen some by now."


	10. Chapter 9: Terry

"Ahh!"

"Did you hear that?"

"Yeah, where is it coming from?"

"Ahh!"

"There it is again…"

"Where's it coming from?"

"It sounds like it's coming from down here."

We walk into the center of the hallway and we see- "Is that what I think it is?"

"A tree?"

"Yeah, what's a tree doing down here?" "It's a sapling."

"Ahh! Hu- Huma-"

"Is it-?"

"Talking?"

"What's it saying?"

"Humans!"

"I think it just said-"

"Humans! Here? Now? No, not again!"

Betty turns to me. "How do you want to go about this?"

"You want to kill him?"

"Please don't kill me!"

"Let's wait for a sec." "I wanna hear what he has to say."

"Who are you?"

"My name is Terry, humans." "I am a tree, as you can see."

"Terry, huh?" "What are you doing here and why can you talk?"

"I'm hiding from him."

"Him?"

"Who is him?"

"Luko!"

"Luko?" My face drains. Oh no. Not him again.

"Who is Luko?"

"He was once the king of the monsters."

"What happened?"

"Now he's the beast of the RUINS." "He traps humans here and kills them."

"Kills them?"

"He lures them, using treats and deception."

"Sarah was right." "The monsters truly are monsters."

"You shouldn't be here." "They'll kill you."

"I don't think so."

"We can handle the monsters."

"Really?"

"Yep, you don't have to worry about a thing."

"Just stay away from them."

"We can protect ourselves."

"Then let me help you."

"Help us?"

"How could you possibly help us?"

"I know the forbidden realm like the back of my bark."

"Meaning…"

"I can guide you through the RUINS and help you get home."

"But we aren't trying to get home."

Betty motions me over and whispers"Michael, this "tree" could be of use to us."

"Not following."

"He can lead us through the Forbidden Realm, making our job easier."

"You're right."

"And when we get to the end…"

"Right."

"So he can help us, for now."

"Sounds good." We turn back to Terry. "Terry, your offer still on the table?"

"It is, humans."

"We accept."

"Really? Thank you for sparing me."

"No problem." If only he knew...

Terry leads us down the hallway but stops at a door that is locked.

"It's a good thing that the last one didn't kill me."

"The last one?"

"She was different. She wore a blue and white jumper and had brown eyes." She seemed so nice."

"What was this human's name?

"I believe it was Bailey or something."

"Bailey? Huh? Interesting…"

"Why?"

"The name sounds familiar but I can't pinpoint it."

"Oh, anyways, the RUINS are full of puzzles but if you do them wrong, they're booby trapped." "Here, I'll take care of them for you."

Terry opens the door by putting bark on the platforms.

"Thanks, Terry." "

"Well, I know your names aren't human. So what would you like me to call you?"

"I'm Michael."

"My name is Betty." Betty and Michael, huh? Are you two like friends?"

I look at Betty and she looks back at me. "I guess you could call us"

"Partners?"

"Acquaintances?"

"Friends?"

"I'm going to go with friends."

I smile."Sure."

Betty smiles back."Let's go with that."

"Well then, Betty and Michael, I hope I can be of use to you." I only wish to help the children who come down here."

"Terry, have you seen human children come down here before?"

"Yes, in fact, right now I'm helping guide another child through this prison."

"Another child?"

"Can you describe this other child to us?"

About your height, Betty. Brown hair, Brown eyes, carrying a boot and a stick. Wearing a blue and white jumper and blue shorts.

 _Brown hair, brown eyes, blue and white jumper and blue shorts. What about that seemed so familiar?_

"Does she have a name?"

"That's Bailey."

"Do you know where she is?"

"Last I checked, she was in the Valley of Snow."

"How did she get there?"

"Did she escape Luko?"

"More like she ran away." "Speaking of which, I must leave you to go check up on her."

"Good luck."

"Bye Terry."

Terry disappears into the ground and we continue forward.


	11. Chapter 10: Spirits of the Past

We continue down the pathway until we see two staircases. One of the staircases is blocked by rocks and debris. The other staircase is clean and well kept.

"Michael! Look! In the middle of the path.

I look at where Betty is pointing. "It's a save point."

"What's it doing down here?"

"Maybe it's because of my trait?"

"It's possible." I click the save point.

There is danger ahead but you stay determined.

"Danger ahead, huh? That must mean…"

"Monsters."

"Exactly."

I click save. "Then let's get started."

"After you."

We continue down the path until we encounter a monster. It looks like a toad and frog were mixed together and then it was given spikes. The toad creature snarls and leaps into the air.

I pull out my dagger and slice across the monsters body. The dagger slices cleanly through the creature, slicing it in half. It doesn't bleed however. It simply turns to dust.

"You won! You earned 5 EXP and 5 Gold.

"It didn't bleed?"

"Yeah, it just turned to dust."

"Weird."

"What's weird?"

"When a human is wounded, they bleed."

"Right."

"But when a monster is wounded or dies…"

"They turn to dust."

"Exactly."

"But then why is my dagger caked in blood and dust?"

"Human blood and monster dust. Don't you remember?"

I gasp. "Trinity." "I-" "I killed her."

"You did what you had to do."

"Yeah, you're right." I sigh.

For some reason a voice I don't recognize goes off in my head.

"Your road will be a dark one, with trials and tribulations."

"Huh?"

"What is it Michael?"

"You don't hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"That voice…" "

Your path will be mired with betrayal, darkness, heartbreak and loneliness."

"There, that voice."

"What are you talking about, Michael? I don't hear anything."

"Never mind, it's probably nothing."

"Ok, if you say so."

I sigh as we continue walking forward. Where was that voice coming from? It seemed familiar. It was the same voice I heard whenever I clicked the SAVE points.

But before the SAVE points, I had never heard it before in my life.

I hear another voice.

" **Come on, Michael, let's go play."** I gasp.

"Michael, are you okay?"

"That voice, I recognize it."

"Michael, let's sit down and rest. I think you're hearing things."

"No, I'm fine."

"Michael, you've fought monsters, fallen 9,000 feet and killed a human." "You need to rest."

"I uh guess you're right." I sit down and start to nod off.

"I'll keep watch."

"Thanks, Betty." I close my eyes…


	12. Chapter 11: Troubled Rest

As soon as I close my eyes, I hear voices. I can't see anything but the voices are clear as day.

"You have a beautiful child, Mrs. Sunvale."

"Please, just call me Sarah."

"You as well, Mr. Sunvale."

"Please, just call me Daniel."

"Let me hold, the child."

"I don't think so."

"She has a SOUL of Integrity, she's just going to predict his future."

"Alright."

"Here, let me see them."

I hear a different voice now. I can open my eyes now as well.

I hear laughing. I open my eyes.

I see a boy and a girl sitting inside a bedroom. I recognize this room, it's my room.

The girl, she's laughing and smiling. She's wearing a red and green jumper and has red eyes. Eyes of Determination.

The boy, I recognize him immediately. It's me. Or it was me. Once… He has brown hair and his eyes are mismatched. One is green and the other is red. Green for Kindness and Red for Determination.

He's looking at the girl with a look of intrigue and disappointment on his face.

" **Come on, Michael, the castle gets so boring, let's go play."**

"What do you want to do Sammy? We can't leave." "Why don't we go pick some golden flowers in the garden?"

" **We did that yesterday."**

"We can play any game you want around the castle."

" **But, the castle is so boring." "Let's leave the castle and go to the forest."**

"The forest?" His demeanor changes. He looks uneasy.

"Are you insane? Those lands are forbidden. Ever since the treaty and the war."

 **She smirks ."Let me guess, you're worried about the monsters, aren't you?"**

He sighs. "You didn't see them. You weren't there for the war." "We lost. The monsters could have destroyed us all." "I wounded their king." "Their king, he vowed to kill me.

" **But they didn't." Didn't they return to the mountain?"**

"I think so, but still, the forest is considered part of the monsters territory." "They gained it as a result of the treaty."

" **Come on, you've got a dagger and I've got a shield and knife."**

" **If we get into any trouble, we can protect ourselves."**

"Sammy, it isn't a good idea."

 **She sighs. "Fine, I guess you don't want to find out about the echo flowers."**

"The Echo Flowers?" The old me looks at Sammy. Sammy smiles and nods.

" **According to legend, there is a flower deep in the forest that can mirror your voice and repeat whatever it hears."**

"A flower that can repeat whatever it hears?" "That sounds so cool."

" **It does, but we're stuck here."**

He relents. "Fine, lets go see if the echo flowers are real."

 **She beams. "Really? Yay."**

"Come on." They walk off and the image fades. If only I had known.

We never would have left the castle that day. It's all my fault. I failed her, I failed myself, I failed everyone.

I start to cry. "Sammy, I'm sorry."

I recognized her voice so clearly. I remember her laughter and singing. We collected golden flowers which I always put at least one in her hair.

We did everything together. She was my best friend.

"Michael." I hear a different voice.

"Michael, wake up." Is that Betty?


	13. Chapter 12: Luko

"Wake up, Michael!"

I open my eyes.

"Hey there, sleepyhead." "I didn't know we needed sleep."

"Don't you sleep?"

"Nope."

"Well I don't sleep either. I just have visions and flashbacks."

"Oh, shall we continue forward then?"

"Yeah, let's go."

I get to my feet and we continue down the pathway. We reach a spike path.

"What do we do Michael? How do we get around this?"

I pull an apple I had brought with me out of my inventory. I place it on the first step. Nothing happens.

"I think it's a pathway. I turn around and look to my left. There's a sign.

"The western path is the same as the eastern path."

"What does it mean?"

" I think it's a path. Let's try it." I step on the first step. "4 steps east, one step north. I take 4 steps across and then head up 1 step. Betty follows me. "3 east, 2 north." 3 steps to the right and 2 steps up. "1 east, 2 north" 1 across 2 up. "Finally, 2 south, 5 east." 2 steps down and five across. We reach the other side.

"Well that's a relief."

"Yeah, there's no telling how sharp those spikes were."

"Let's keep going."

"Alrighty then."

The next room is full of switches. At the end of the doorway is spikes. They're blocking the way forward.

"What do we do, Michael?"

"I think we need to press one of these switches."

"But which one?"

"I'm not sure."

I click on the blue switch. The ground drops from under me. I fall. Wait a second, I can teleport. I reappear at the top.

"Well it's not the blue one."

"It's not the purple one."

"There's two switches left."

"Green or Red."

"Let's try Red."

I click the red switch and I hear a clicking sound. Betty walks down the path.

"That was the right one."

"Let's keep going then." "Sounds good."

We continue down the pathway when suddenly I hear a voice. I look forward and my bones turn to dust. It's my worst fear.

The memories come back to me. A tall monster with goat fur and carrying a giant trident on his back. I remember the fire magic he used as well. There is a large scar across his face from one eye to the other. Almost as if someone had taken a knife or more specifically a _dagger_ to it.

"Curious… that voice sounds familiar." "It sounds like the little boy who smote my crown and that gave me these scars."

I turn back to Betty. "This is bad."

" **What is it?"** **She turns the corner and looks forward.** **"** **Oh."** **Interesting, you don't look like the boy but your voice is similar. "I thought these lands were forbidden and that there was no way to enter the mountain." "You shouldn't have come here."**

" **You will not escape like the last one." "You will die."**

" **Come to my home at the edge of the RUINS." "It's the only way to escape this prison." "I'll see you there…"**

He turns and walks off.

"What the hell was that?"

I turn to Betty, a look of shock on my face. "That was Luko, the King of Monsterkind and the Beast of the RUINS."

"Luko." "Didn't Terry say something about him?"

"Everything Terry said was true. He was once the king of monsterkind and now..

"He truly is a monster."

"Yes."

How do you know Luko?"

"Luko and I, we have a history."

"What do you mean?"

"This isn't my first time encountering him."

"You've met him before? When?"

"Long ago." "What happened?" "Tell me."

"First let me start off by saying that this is all my fault."

"It is? How?"

"I could retell the story but that's not good enough." I'm going to show you what happened.

"How?"

"Using my powers, we are gonna journey back to the day the peace ended and the second war began." "I'm going to show you why Luko has those scars and what happened that day. "Take my hand."

Betty reaches her hand out and I take it in mine. I bring the two hands to where my SOUL is. My Soul glows brightly.

" _Relive the past yet again,take us back to where it all began, the day the peace came to an end and the day I lost my best friend."_ My Soul glows brightly as we both close our eyes to avoid being blinded by the light.


	14. Chapter 13: My Promise

I open my eyes. Betty follows suit.

"Woah, where are we?"

I look around. I see the symbol of the delta rune similar to the one the monsters used except there is a staff on one side of the rune and a shield on the other. The monsters are not pictured as the rest of it is occupied by humanity. The color is also blue while the one for the monsters is purple. I recognize this place right away.

"We're in the Ancient Kingdom of Sunvale." This is where all the humans in the world once lived over 500 years ago." "This is the castle, my home."

"You lived in this castle?"

"Yeah."

"Strange, it reminds me a lot of my home. I lived in a castle too but it was different."

"This is the main hall so if we head left, we'll find the garden but if we go right, we will head towards my room."

"What's in the garden?"

I give a sad smile and sigh. "Golden Flowers."

"Wait, like the ones we landed on?"

"Yeah."

"So, how are we able to be here?"

"Well technically, we did but at the same time didn't go back in time. We went back to a memory in my past." "As a result, we are not able to be seen."

"Alright then."

"So let's go right."

"Sounds good."

We walk down the right path and through the door into my room. I can see the younger me and Sammy laughing and talking on the bed. I remember it like it was yesterday. The events and conversation play out just as I remember it.

" **Come on, Michael, the castle gets so boring, let's go play."**

"What do you want to do Sammy? We can't leave."

"Why don't we go pick some golden flowers in the garden?"

" **We did that yesterday."**

"We can play any game you want around the castle."

" **But, the castle is so boring." "Let's leave the castle and go to the forest."**

"The forest?"

His demeanor changes. He looks uneasy.

"Are you insane? Those lands are forbidden. Ever since the treaty and the war."

" **Let me guess, you're worried about the monsters, aren't you?"**

"You didn't see them. You weren't there for the war." "We lost. The monsters could have destroyed us all." "I wounded their king." "Their king, he vowed to kill me.

" **But they didn't." Didn't they return to the mountain?"**

"I think so, but still, the forest is considered part of the monsters territory." "They gained it as a result of the treaty."

" **Come on, you've got a dagger and I've got a shield and knife."** "If we get into any trouble, we can protect ourselves."

"Sammy, it isn't a good idea." "Fine, I guess you don't want to find out about the echo flowers."

This is the part that Sammy had used to convince me.

"The Echo Flowers?"

The old me looks at Sammy. Sammy smiles and nods.

"According to legend, there is a flower deep in the forest that can mirror your voice and repeat whatever it hears."

"A flower that can repeat whatever it hears?" "That sounds so cool."

"It does, but we're stuck here."

He relents. "Fine, lets go see if the echo flowers are real."

"Really? Yay." "Come on."

They walk off and I turn to Betty.

"Come on, let's follow them." Betty nods. As we closely follow the Sammy and Michael from the past, Betty turns to me. "

Are they real?" "Are what real?" "The echo flowers. Is the legend true?"

"Yes, they are real. They are at the heart of the forest." "At the time, it was forbidden territory under the control of the monsters." "I warned Sammy that it wasn't safe." "She wouldn't listen to me." "She believed the monsters had returned to the mountain."

"Was she wrong?"

"You'll soon find out. Let's keep going."

We leave the castle and head towards Mount Dianso. We enter the forest, closely following Michael and Sammy. I listen along to their conversation while Betty trails behind.

"Sammy, this isn't a good idea." "We should go back to the castle."

"Where is your sense of fun and adventure?"

"I'm telling you, we're making a mistake." "You weren't old enough in the first war." "You didn't see my friends. Murdered by those monsters." "I could only watch my friends, as they died, one by one." "People I had known my entire life, wiped out and killed in an instant."

"You're right, Michael." "I was too young to be in the first war." "I was a little child." "But times have changed." "Don't you think the monsters have changed?"

"No."

For the first time, Michael looks at Sammy with a look of heartbreak. He clenches his fist and tears roll down his face.

"They took everything from me. My friends, my parents, everything." "You and Sarah are all I have left." "That's all the monsters are. That's all they will ever be." "Just monsters."

"Fine, let's go home." "I'm sorry I was so stupid and foolish."

Michael's face softens. "I'm sorry, too." The smile returns to his face. "We're already here, let's go see if the flowers are real."

"If you want to."

"You want to and so I want to."

"We're almost to the heart of the forest." "Come on."

They continue to walk forward and we follow. I sigh. I know what's going to happen next but I'll let Betty see for herself.

We enter the heart of the forest, continuing to follow Michael and Sammy.

"Look over there!" I look up the path simultaneously with Michael. There in the center of the forest in the clearing is a glowing blue flower.

"Are those them?" Betty is now next to me.

"Yes, that is the echo flower." "Just as the legend stated. They do exactly what they were said to do as well."

The two kids are in awe as they discover the power of the echo flower. Time passes. They laugh, sing, and make the flower say anything that come to their mind.

It makes me smile but then I remember what's about to happen.

"They look so happy."

"Yeah. But I never got the chance to tell her."

"Tell her what?"

"That I wanted her to stay by my side forever."

"Like how exactly?"

"Best friends forever."

Around my neck, I had almost forgotten about it was my locket. It has my name engraved on it.

"What is that?"

"It is a locket." "I was given it by Sarah, after my parents died." "At least, that's what Sarah told me." "Inside the locket is a picture of me and Sammy." "I got another locket and it was meant to be for Sammy." "I was going to give it to her that day but then it happened." "

What did?"

 **A deep gruff voice says "Well, well, well, look what we have here."**


	15. Chapter 14: Losing my Best Friend

The past versions of Michael and Sammy look up. The past Michael looks afraid. Standing in front of them now is a tall goat man with a trident on his back.

I recognize him. It's Luko. But he looks younger.

"Not again. Anybody but him."

"Michael, who is that?"

" **I see you remember me, young Michael Sunvale." "You remind me a lot of your parents."**

"How dare you speak of my parents!" "You murdered them and my friends."

" **Not quite. I did no harm to your parents." "Since your friend doesn't seem to know me, allow me to introduce myself. I am Luko, the king of Monsterkind." "These lands are forbidden." "You out of all people Michael should know that."**

" **This is in direct violation of the treaty." "Not to mention, your friend stole an echo flower."**

I gasp. I didn't remember that part. The past Michael looked at Sammy. Sammy quietly pulled out the flower.

Michael gasped. "Sammy?"

"I'm sorry."

" **Sorry? It's not that simple anymore." "I think I'll make an example of you two." "You should never have come here."**

Luko picks Sammy up into the air. Michael charges at him, but Luko smacks him to the side.

" _King Luko, please, don't do this."_

Luko looks at Michael without pity."Why should I care about one human child?"

" _Luko, please."_

"She means a lot to you, doesn't she? Sound familiar?"

I gasp.

"Michael?"

"I remember this now."

"What did you do?"

Luko continues talking to the younger Michael and Sammy.

"You started all of this." "You caused the first war." "You set the pieces in motion. All your friends that died. That was all your fault."

"Michael, what is he talking about?"

"Go ahead, tell your friend what you did."

"Sammy, I'm sorry." "This is all my fault." "I was the cause of the first war." "What? How? That's not possible."

" _I killed the Prince of Monsters."_

"The Prince of Monsters?"

"Michael Sunvale killed Lukarias, the prince of monsters and my son." "So I decided to pay him back in full." "I would take everything that he ever had or loved."

" _Lukarias tortured me, made me miserable."_

"I can't condone the actions of my son, yes but that did not give you justification to kill him."

" _You're right." "It didn't but you declared war on humanity as a whole." "Your grudge was with me, not all of humanity." "You nearly wiped us out." "Since the war, we've grown stronger." "If you do this, you'll end up regretting it."_

" _Please, Lukarias believed in peace." "Please let my friend go and put all of this behind us."_

"After all you've done, after taking away my son, you think I am going to let you be?" "I am taking you to the Queen so you can answer for your crimes."

Sammy is trying to escape. She just needs a distraction. Michael summons a shield. He throws it at Luko. It hits him in the face. He roars out in pain and drops Sammy. Michael leaps up and catches Sammy. He takes Sammy and runs.

"Don't let them escape!" As they continue running, they are swiftly surrounded by Luko and other monsters.

"You will die here." "There is no escape." Luko grabs Sammy.

"This is the end." "Any last words?"

"No." She closes her eyes and chants. "With my knife I cast it well, from the scrolls a forbidden spell, " "All who face him will fall and stagger, now enchant Michael's dagger." Michael's dagger glows for a second as the color changes and then the glow fades. The dagger is now gold but still looks the same.

"Sammy." He leaps into the air " _LET HER GO!"_

He slices across Lukos arm The dagger slices straight across his arm from the hand to the arm. A huge gash about 6 inches deep is cut into him. He roars out in pain but it's not blood that comes out. It's dust.

He tosses Sammy away in pain and she tumbles into the cavern and to the edge. "Sammy!" He races to the caverns edge as Sammy hangs on.

"I'm sorry Michael, guess we should've just stayed in the castle."

"Sammy, no!"

"I can't hold on much longer and if you try to catch me, we'll both fall."

Michael is crying. Sammy no, please."

"I'll see you again." Go, warn the kingdom." "Don't tell them the truth." "Please end the feud once and for all for me."

Sammy lets go and Michael screams out. "Sammy no!" Michael falls to his knees, crying.

He suddenly rises to his feet but something is different. His green eye fades and turns red. He looks angry and terrifying. He then gets to his feet and races to the castle.


	16. Chapter 15: Sarah's Warning

We follow Michael as he races back to the castle. He's careful to make sure no one sees him. He races to Sarah and Daniels room.

"Daniel! Sarah!"

"Michael? What is it?"

"The monsters, they're back."

"I told you they wouldn't stay under the mountain Daniel."

"King Luko. He took Sammy."

"Luko did this? Wow, and you thought the monsters wanted peace Daniel."

"Michael, what are you talking about?" "I think you're lying."

"I'm not lying, I swear."

"How dare you Daniel, accuse him of such a thing?" Sarah pulls out her staff.

"What are you going to do?"

"It's time to end this."

"For too long we've let the monsters torture us and remind us of our weakness." Her eyes are a bright red. She looks powerful. She is the Wizard of Determination after all.

"It's time to show Monsters how determined humans can be." "Daniel, gather all the adults in the village." "We're taking the fight to the monsters."

"Wait, sister you don't seriously believe this do you?"

"Humanity has suffered for far too long." "Do as I say."

"Yes, Sarah." "You." He points to Michael. "You stay here." Daniel walks off.

I look at the past Michael and Sarah while Betty sits behind me.

Sarah turns to Michael.

"Michael, It's time I told you something important." "Daniel doesn't think you're ready." "I can see though." "There's a look of Determination in your eyes that I've never seen before." "You want to help your friend." "I remember how heartbroken you were when the first war happened and your friends died." "Sammy was all you had left." "If you wish to fight, then I will not stop you."

"You see, when you were a little boy, you were brought to a woman who had an integrity SOUL. As you already know, children of integrity are considered the weakest in the village." "However, there is a rare power that children of Integrity can obtain." "The ability to predict the future." "You were taken to this woman and she predicted your future."

"What she said troubled me." "She said your path would be marked by betrayal, loneliness, heartbreak, and sadness." "She said your road would be a dark one with trials and tribulations." "I grew troubled by this and that is why Daniel was hesitant to let you journey beyond the castle.

However, he didn't hear the last part. The last part she said was "When all seems to be lost, you will either be humanity's downfall, or its savior." "I believe the latter over the former." "Prove yourself to humanity." "You are a Sunvale." "The time for kindness is over." "Stay determined, my child."

"Sarah." "This ends now." "I made a promise." "I promised Sammy that I would end this feud." "It's time to make the monsters pay."

"Michael, wait a few days. If we haven't returned, come to the mountain."

Sarah walks off and Michael sits on his bed. He pulls out his dagger. It glows gold in the sunlight. "Sammy, I will find you again. I will make them pay for what they did to you." "I will keep my promise..."

I turn to Betty and sigh. "Anyway that's about it." "There's not much more left to explain unless you have any other questions."

"I do have two more questions." "Why did you kill Lukarias?" "Lastly, you still haven't explained why Luko has those scars."

"Sigh." "Which question do you want answered first?"

"Since we're already here, let's see how Luko got those scars first."  
"Very well."


	17. Chapter 16: The Second War

We walked out of the castle and back towards Mount Dianso. The humans came, over 50,000 of them. Marching up to the base of the forest.

King Luko looked on in surprise. "I see how it is, young Sunvales." "I won't let you escape this time."

We follow Sarah who left Michael home while Daniel walks alongside her.

"I'm telling you, this is a bad idea."

"That no longer matters." "Today, humanity will prosper and move on in peace or we will die." "There is no other option."

"But the monsters look surprised, almost as if they weren't expecting us."

"They kidnapped a human child, that's the last straw." "I saw it your way, Daniel for a long time. But now, I've been proven right."

"Where is the boy?"

"Michael, our son? He is at home." "You didn't want him to come, remember?"

"Right, I uh forgot about that."

"You know, you should apologize to him."

"For what?"

"For calling him a liar."

"But we don't know if he's telling the truth."

"I believe him, and you should too." "Especially since you know-"

"Oh, right." "He doesn't know."

"Come on, one way or another, this battle will decide the fate of humanity."

"You're right about that, at least."

The humans reach the monsters lines. "Attack, for humanity!"

"For the future of the monsters, we must win." "Defend at all costs!"

The battle raged for several days and neither side had the advantage.

"Wait, Michael, where is he?"

"Hold on a second."

Suddenly a young looking figure in a gray cloak walks forward. He pulls out a golden dagger and faces King Luko. "Is that?"

"Yes, it's me.""

"Who are you, mysterious young one?" "I can't see your face. "You wear the cloaks of a wizard, yet I have never seen such a young looking one."

"I am the wizard of Vengeance." "I will save humanity and make the monsters pay for what they've done."

"That voice."

"That voice… It couldn't be."

"It is you." "You naive child, you can't defeat monsters." "You humans are weak."

He pulls the cloak off, revealing that it's Michael.

"Michael?" "What is he doing here?" "Why are his eyes red? What happened to his green eye?"

"He must have left the castle and came here." "As for that, it looks like pure Determination."

"Humans have changed, Luko. We are far more powerful than ever before." "The kindness I had is dead. All that's left is Determination." "Now, I'm determined." "Determined to make you pay for what you did."

He leaps into the air and slices the dagger across Luko's face. Luko doesn't have a chance to react. The dagger slices across his face, dust pouring out as a huge gash opens across the center of Luko's face above his eyes.

"Aggh! That really hurt!"

Michael charges Luko, knocking him backwards towards the edge of the cavern as the fight continues.

While the battle rages outside, Michael faces Luko alone.

"You dare to stand before the king of monsterkind?" "You killed my son, you took my only family." "Humanity calls us the monsters?" "Heh. The only monster here is you."

"That's it!" The anger and rage that I kept in for so long finally burst.

"You took everything from me. My family, my friends, my best friend." "Anyone I've ever known, loved, cared for." "Brutally murdered by your kind." "Lukarias believed in peace. I didn't kill him on purpose and he made me miserable for years. For some reason, your son hated me. He tried to kill me. I was only protecting myself." "But now, now, I am going to make you pay."

He leaps into the air, swinging his right foot out and firing a beam of light from his dagger. The beam stuns Luko knocking him off balance. He staggers and drops his trident.

"This is for Sammy!" Michael's foot connects with Luko's face, knocking him backwards as his crown falls to the ground and he falls over the precipice and down the mountain.

"I will kill you!"

He tumbles down the mountain. Past Michael breathes heavily as he walks back outside with the crown of King Luko in his hand.

Back outside, Sarah and Daniel battle against Queen Lukia and the other humans battle the monsters.

"Watch out for her magic." She can use fire very effectively." "Keep your guard up."

Michael walks forward and all the monsters suddenly stop as do the humans.

Queen Lukia continues fighting Sarah and Daniel. " **You humans have gotten stronger." "You aren't the same cowards who fled in fear when we nearly wiped you out." "But not strong enough."**

She throws a fireball at Sarah and summons a fire column. She knocks Sarah down and her staff tumbles away. Daniel drops his staff and his hair turns grey.

"Sarah!" "Are you okay?"

She grits her teeth. "I'm hurt, please leave me."

"No, you were right, they are monsters." "Please, let me help you." "I'm sorry I thought Michael was lying." "I'm sorry that I didn't believe you." He falls to his knees. "I'm sorry."

Lukia stands triumphantly. " **So begins the fall of humanity and the eternal rule of monsters." "The other wizards are dead." "All that's left are the two of you and all these other humans." "Oh and I'm pretty sure my husband finally finished off that pathetic child of yours."**

"Michael, no."

"Where is he?"

"You're wrong."

" **What? That's impossible."**

"Michael?"

"He's alive." "The savior of humanity."

Michael stepped calmly forward through the crowd of stunned monsters and humans.

 **Lukia looked like she had seen a ghost. Then her anger returned. "Where is my husband?"** Michael tossed the crown forward. It bounced forward and finally landed at the queens feet. " **The king's crown… My husband. What have you done?"**

"The king of Monsters has fallen down." "You have tortured us for far too long. You will join him." "Daniel, Sarah, now!"

Sarah leaps to her feet as does Daniel almost as if by magic. Daniel's hair turns orange again and Sarah's turns red. The humans begin firing back in fury.

The monsters are suddenly mowed down by the thousands. The remaining ones rapidly begin to retreat into the mountain. Lukia leads the survivors into the mountain. Lukia goes last, standing before Michael, Daniel, Sarah and the remaining humans. " **This isn't over, we will return and get our revenge." "You can't stop us forever."**

"Maybe we can…" My hair turns red and my dagger begins to glow. " _Humans and monsters, once best of friends, our friendship has come to an end. In this world, your final hour as we trap you underground with my power." "Humans will finally be merrier, trap you forever behind a magic barrier."_

A massive beam of light shoots out of my dagger. It begins to create a massive barrier wall, sealing off the mountain and surrounding it in a shield. Lukia slams her hands against the barrier to no avail. The monsters can't escape.

" **No! No! No! You will pay for this, Michael Sunvale!"**

The last thing he says is "Burn in Hell."

Lukia fades into the mountain with the rest of the monsters. Michael sighs and faints, collapsing to the ground.

"Michael!"

"Is he? Is he dead?"

"No, he's still breathing."

"He just used a ton of magical power to cast that spell." "I can't believe he was able to create this." This, is something you and I could only dream of creating.

"How did he do it? How is this possible? How did he create such a powerful magical barrier?"

"I don't know." "He is far more powerful than I realized."

"Will he wake up?"

"Let's take him home and let him rest." "He should be fine."

Betty and I watch as the humans walk back to the kingdom in silence while Sarah carries Michael home.

"Come on, Betty, let's go."

"Yes, Michael."

We leave the memories and return to the RUINS.


	18. Chapter 17: Betty's First Friend

"Well, now you know, Betty." "It was all my fault. But the response by the monsters was not right." "I felt bad about what I did to Lukarias." "I don't understand why he treated me so poorly." "Maybe it's because he thought I had friends and he was envious of me."

"Maybe it's because of what happened the day I fell and hit my head. Lukarias tripped me and my head crashed into the rocks. I was unconscious for 3 days. After that, things began to change. I suddenly didn't feel alone." "It was if something that had been asleep for a long time, had suddenly woken up. My head was constantly hurting and I couldn't concentrate."

"Lukarias used this to his advantage, manipulating me and making me look bad." "My friends, none of them could understand what was going on. Only Sarah and Sammy were there to comfort me. Everyone else thought I had gone insane."

"Finally one day, Lukarias challenged me to a fight." I refused, not wanting to fight. He ran me through with his sword."

"I should have died but for some reason, I didn't. My Soul split but then it suddenly came back together.

Lukarias was stunned and I got to my feet." "He fought me and I continued to take hit after hit, blow after blow until finally he insulted humanity, my family, and my friends."

"I snapped and I pulled out my dagger and stabbed him through the heart. He gasped in shock and I took his SOUL in my hand." "I said "Burn in Hell" and crushed the SOUL, killing Lukarias as he faded to dust.

Luko found out and declared war on humanity." "The kingdom was nearly destroyed and the human race was nearly wiped out as well.

"But we survived and I hoped to put the past behind me." "But things only got worse. Luko took everything I had and everything I ever loved."

"Now, I have nothing. Just my dagger, my promise and my mission. All I want is revenge." "To make them pay for what the monsters did to me and how the humans of this later time treated me."

"I never asked for any of this. Neither did you. We both have been forced to suffer because of someone else." "You had Agate and I had Sarah. Copper killed you and Daniel killed me."

"I know what I am now. You represent Fear and I represent Revenge." "The two traits surprisingly go hand in hand. We are both meant to be feared and we're both out for revenge." "We will make them pay."

"Yes, we will."

"Michael, thank you for helping me and trusting me."

"We share a common point of view and think alike." "I'm glad to help you and I'm just happy to have a friend again."

"We're friends?"

"Yeah, we are. You remind me a lot of Sammy." "You have that same kind of energy and enthusiasm she possessed." "You're a surprisingly sweet and cute girl." "I mean, I should be terrified of you, but instead, I am drawn to you."

"I can't understand this feeling but it's like we share a connection but I don't understand how." "All I know is that, you're all I have left, Betty." "You're my best friend."

"Michael, I didn't realize." "I never had a best friend before." "The humans were terrified of me." "That might have been because of how things transpired, but, all I really ever wanted was a friend. I have Kumu, but he's just a trusty companion."

"You're different. You are just like me." " In fact, I think you are this world's me." "It might explain a lot." Why I felt a connection to you." "Why all the other timelines I went through, I couldn't find an ally or someone who agreed with me." "They thought I was too bold, too risky and they feared me."

"But you, you are drawn to me. You understand my pain and sympathize with me." "We both suffer from a dark past." "But, yours was predicted while mine was completely unexpected." "You accepted what was going to happen while I tried to fight it."

"We both desired to change our fates but I don't think either of us could have predicted what would happen." "Hopefully, we can put the past behind us."

"Yeah, let's hope so." We stand up and continue to walk through the RUINS.

"Michael, I do have one more question."

"What might that be?"

"What exactly happened after you hit your head?"

"What do you mean?'

"The day you hit your head."

"What about it?"

"You said when you hit your head, you were unconscious for 3 days."

"Right, why?'

"Well after that, you said you were unable to concentrate."

"Yeah…" "I'm still not following."

"You then said that it was like something had been dormant for a long time and had awaken."

"More like somethings."

"Somethings?"

"There were multiple." "2 to be exact." "I just wasn't able to concentrate or think clearly." "I can't really understand what happened or what was going on. However, I do know that Lukarias used this to his advantage, Sammy tried to find out what was wrong and Sarah comforted me. If it hadn't been for Lukarias, potentially none of this would have ever happened." "There is one good thing about me dying though."

"What might that be?" "The voices disappeared after the second war." "Hopefully they're gone forever."

I sudden;y hear a familiar voice. " **I don't think so."**

"Oh no."

"What?"

"Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

 _Then there's another voice. It's feminine."You haven't introduced us? How rude."_

"That."

"I don't hear anything." "You ok, Michael?"

"I'm fine, it's just I could've sworn I heard another voice." Another _2_ voices to be exact."

 **I hear him again. "Oh, you heard us, dumbass."**

 _I also hear her."No need for the language."_

" **Screw you."**

"Oh god, not again."

"Michael? What's wrong?"

"The voices, they're back!"


End file.
